In a statement released by the university, McCaffery said "Today, we received word from doctors that the tumor that was removed during our son Patrick's surgery on Wednesday is malignant. We will visit with doctors as soon as possible to determine Patrick's treatment.

"Margaret and I would like to thank everyone again for the outpouring of support from across the country for our son Patrick and family this past week. We appreciate everyone's thoughts and prayers."

Patrick McCaffery, 14, had surgery to remove a tumor from his thyroid early Wednesday morning. The Iowa coach caught an 8:30 p.m. flight from Dayton, where the Hawkeyes were playing in the NCAA tournament, back to Iowa City Tuesday evening to be with his son.